Lolita fashion

Lolita fashion (ロリータ・ファッション Rorīta fasshon) is a fashion subculture originating in Japan that is based on Victorian-era clothing, but the style has expanded greatly beyond Japan. The Lolita look began primarily as one of modesty with a focus on quality in both material and manufacture of garments. The original silhouette is of a knee length skirt or dress with a "cupcake" shape assisted by petticoats, but has expanded into various types of garments including corsets and floor length skirts. Blouses, knee high socks or stockings and headdresses are also worn. Lolita fashion has evolved into several different sub styles and has a subculture that is present in many parts of the world.

Although many people point to Japan for the Lolita trend, as the creator of the "Lolita Fashion", the origin of its meaning is complex, and remains unclear. It is likely the movement started in the late 1970s when famous labels including Pink House, Milk and Pretty (later known as Angelic Pretty) began selling clothes that would be considered "Lolita" by today's standards. Shortly after that came Baby, The Stars Shine Bright, and Metamorphose temps de fille.

In the 1990s, Lolita fashion became better recognized, with bands like Princess Princess coming into popularity at the time. These bands wore intricate costumes, which fans began adopting as their own style. The style soon spread and ultimately reached Tokyo where it became popularized throughout Japanese youth culture. Today, Lolita fashion has gained global popularity and can even be found in Japanese department stores.

Gothic Lolita
Gothic lolita, sometimes shortened to GothLoli (ゴスロリ gosu rori), is a combination of the Gothic and Lolita fashion. The fashion originated in the late 1990s in Harajuku.

Gothic Lolita fashion is characterized by darker make-up and clothing. Red lipstick and smokey or neatly defined eyes, created using black eyeliner, are typical styles, although as with all Lolita sub-styles the look remains fairly natural. Though Gothic make-up has been associated with a white-powdered face, this is usually considered poor taste within Lolita fashion circles.

Brands which exemplify the Gothic lolita style include Atelier-Pierrot, Atelier Boz, Black Peace Now, h. NAOTO Blood and Moi-même-Moitié.

Elegant Gothic Lolita (EGL) and its masculine equivalent elegant Gothic aristocrat (EGA) are sub-styles of gothic lolita and of aristocrat fashion, championed by the visual kei rock musician Mana with his fashion label Moi-même-Moitié, and influenced by steampunk fashion.

Sweet Lolita
Sweet Lolita, also known as ama-loli (甘ロリ ama rori) in Japanese, is heavily influenced by Victorian and Edwardian clothing. Focusing on the fantasy aspects of Lolita, the Sweet Lolita style adopts the basic Lolita format and uses lighter colors and childlike motifs in its design.

Make-up used in sweet Lolita is common throughout most Lolita styles. Pink, peach, or pearl make-up styles are highly 'sweet' and used by many Sweet Lolitas. This look, paired with a shade of bright pink, red or sometimes flesh-pink lipstick, is commonly used as well.

Outfits consist of pastels, fruit themes (e.g., cherries or strawberries, or any type of sugary fruit), flowers (e.g., roses, jasmines, lilies, cherry blossoms) lace, bows, animal themes (e.g., kittens, bunnies, puppies, unicorns) and ribbons to emphasize the cuteness of the design. Popular themes in the sweet Lolita are references to Alice in Wonderland, candy, and classic fairy tales. Jewellery often reflects this fantasy theme. Headdresses, bonnets and bows are a popular hair accessory to the sweet Lolita look. Bags and purses usually have a princess-like design and often take the shape of fruits, crowns, hearts, stars and stuffed animals.

Examples of Sweet Lolita brands are Angelic Pretty, Baby, The Stars Shine Bright and Metamorphose temps de fille. Emily Temple cute (sister brand of Shirley Temple, a Japanese boutique), Jane Marple, and MILK are brands that carry more clothing that would be considered more casual, and are available to purchase at department stores in Japan.

Classic Lolita
Classic Lolita is a more mature style of Lolita that focuses on Regency, and Victorian styles. Colors and patterns used in classic Lolita can be seen as somewhere between the Gothic looking and sweet styles; it is not as dark as gothic Lolita, but not as cutesy as sweet Lolita. This look can be seen as the more sophisticated, mature Lolita style because of its use of small, intricate patterns, as well more muted colors on the fabric and in the overall design.

Designs containing a-lines, as well as Empire waists are also used to add to the more mature look of the classic style. Most classic Lolita outfits, however, still stick to the basic Lolita silhouette. Shoes and accessories are less whimsical and more functional. Jewelry with intricate designs is also common. The makeup used in classic Lolita is often a more muted version of the sweet Lolita makeup, with an emphasis placed on natural coloring. Classical Lolita brands include Juliette et Justine, Innocent World, Victorian Maiden, Triple Fortune, and Mary Magdalene.

Punk Lolita
Punk Lolita (or Lolita Punk) adds punk fashion elements to Lolita fashion. Motifs that are usually found in punk clothing, such as tattered fabric, ties, safety pins and chains, screen-printed fabrics, plaids, and short, androgynous hairstyles are incorporated into the Lolita look. The most popular garments are blouses or cutsews and skirts, although dresses and jumper skirts are also worn. Common footwear includes boots, Mary Janes or oxfords with platforms. Common Punk Lolita brands are A+Lidel, Putumayo, h. NAOTO and Na+H. Many of the Japanese punk Lolita fashion brands take influence from London's famous Camden Town Markets. Vivienne Westwood, who, though not a Lolita designer, has items and collections that reflect Lolita sensibilities, especially in her Japanese collections, is popular in the punk Lolita scene. Males have known to take up Punk Lolita fashion, and as well as Victorian style Lolita fashion.

Other styles and themes
Because of the "do-it-yourself" nature of Lolita fashion, many other themes have come out of the basic Lolita frame. These styles are often not as well known as the ones mentioned above, but they do showcase the creative nature of the Lolita fashion, and illustrate how people make the fashion their own. Listed below are just a few examples of the smaller subtypes of Lolita fashion.

Princess Lolita
Hime (姫), or "Princess", Lolita is characterized by a princess-style look based upon the European aristocratic style. This typically includes a tiara and a rococo style bustle back skirt. The style is often credited as being influenced by the Hime Gyaru trend that boomed in the late 2000s.

Shiro & Kuro Lolita
Shiro Lolita, or "White Lolita", is a Lolita outfit made entirely of white, cream, or off-white co-ordinates, while its counterpart Kuro Lolita, or "Black Lolita", is an outfit made-up of entirely black co-ordinates. Shiro Lolitas often pair themselves with Kuro Lolitas in twin outfits to create an interesting contrast.

Shiro and Kuro Lolita can be taken from any style of Lolita, whether it be Gothic, Sweet, or Classic. If the co-ordination is completely white, then it is accepted as Shiro Lolita, while if it is entirely black it is accepted as Kuro.

Ōji Lolita
Ōji (王子) or Ōji-sama (王子様), meaning "prince", is a Japanese fashion that is considered the male version of lolita fashion. Some though do not consider it as lolita because it does not follow the typical lolita silhouette but instead takes its influence from the Victorian era of young boys. Though it is considered a "boy style", it may be worn by both genders.undefined

Ōji Includes blouses and shirts, knickerbockers and other styles of short trousers, knee high socks, top hats, and newsboy caps. The colors usually used are black, white, blue and burgundy, though there are feminine versions of the fashion with a broader palette. Good examples would be some of the outfits sold through Baby, the Stars Shine Bright's line Alice and the Pirates.

Though in Japan this fashion is typically referred to as ouji, outside of Japan it is common to hear it referred to as "Kodona".

Guro Lolita
Guro Lolita (Gore Lolita) is the portrayal of a "broken doll" or "Innocent Gore" by using items such as fake blood, make-up, and bandages to give the appearance of injury. It is suggested that Guro Lolitas wear white to "emphasize the contrast between purity and their wounds", or because blood contrasts better with white.



Sailor Lolita
The Sailor Lolita style is Lolita fashion that incorporates the look of a Sailor. This can include sailor collars and ties, sailor hats, and stripes, but it should not be confused with the common Japanese "seifuku," (制服) or sailor-style school uniform.

Also popular is the related substyle "pirate lolita" with a similar nautical theme – this usually incorporates a more elaborate dress, styled with treasure chest bags, tricorns and eyepatches. Jewelry is heavily featured. "Alice & the Pirates" (a sub-label produced by "Baby the Stars Shine Bright") is a clothing brand which is well known for its pirate-like aesthetic.



Country Lolita
Country Lolita is derived from Classic and Sweet Lolita style, and is often a little hard to distinguish due to the similar use of motifs and aesthetics that Classic and Sweet Lolita use. However the Country Lolita style can be recognized by straw baskets, hats, fruit, and gingham patterns.

Wa Lolita
Wa rori (和ロリ), or Wa Lolita combines traditional Japanese clothing styles with the Lolita fashion. The prefix Wa in Wa Lolita comes from the kanji Wa (和), which means Japanese. Wa Lolita usually consists of kimono or hakama modified to fit with common Lolita garments. The bottom half of the garment is altered to accommodate a petticoat, or a kimono-style blouse is used as a top to accompany a plain Lolita skirt. Outerwear can include haori or adult-sized hifu-vests. The shoes and accessories used in this style are typical of traditional Japanese garb including kanzashiflowers, and geta, zori, or Okobo. These shoes are often used in place of the normal Lolita platform and high-heeled shoes.

Qi Lolita
Qi Lolita is a similar style but uses Chinese clothing and accessories in place of Japanese. Usually this includes qipao dresses modified to accommodate a petticoat. Accessories include platform-slippers for footwear and bun-covers as hair accessories.